eyed this since the ks.still thinking. only problem with an "investor" onboard...can we be almost sure of regional bs ie pricing when it gets here?. do backers get option of a gog key??

I can;t find anything concrete on this, and their info is woefully outdated (i.e. they refer to GOG as not having Linux support), but I've got to assume that if they have a deal with GOG to sell the game here, backers would definitely have the choice of grabbing the game from here.

I also assume nothing on the DRM front changed, but I'd still ask before "pre-ordering" the game. And we still can do that till March :D

If they manage to implement everything they want to, this game is gonna be damn fine.

Hmmm, it isn't really clear whether this is a "online-always - but you can play single player" (ala Elite Dangerous), or if it is fully offline UNLESS you will be playing with others.

If it is "online-always even for single player" then how could the expect it to sell on GOG? I guess that they want to sell it here implies it isn't online-always. But I don't like to make such assumptions.

And the KS FAQ DOES say; "... there will be the standard Steam services DRM." so that sort of reverses the "offline" inference.

On the flipside, the system requirements do not mention needing an online connection. But then again, if it has "standard Steam services DRM" then that heavily implies needing an online connection (at least to "authenticate").

So... is this online-always even for single play, or is it "offline" for single play?

I think what they mean by the Steam comment is that the Steam version will come with the standard Steam DRM 'features'. From this paragraph:

The Fairness Directive states that in The Mandate, DRM is outlawed! You’ll require a game-key, and there will be the standard Steam services DRM. In addition we have contacted GoG.com and expect to distribute The Mandate via them at release. Since GoG.com only supports Windows and Mac, for Linux users that want a non-DRM option we plan to offer The Mandate via the Humble Store.

it seems to me that the last sentence indicates without much doubt that there will be a DRM-free version.

As well, since multiplayer supports a maximum of 6 players, I don't think it will be on-line required for the single player campaign (doesn't seem to smack of MMO-style setup).

Obviously though, I'm still making some assumptions here.

we are also assuming GOG will say yes and sell it here -- thats the problem with devs saying they plan to sell on here (and implying backers may get keys on gog - obviously no guarantee unless they say so specifically ..). *me sits on the fence until closer to march*

Well that paragraph you quoted IS the problem. It's simply full of contradictions and implications.

For example, it says:

1a) "DRM is outlawed!"
1b) "there will be the standard Steam services DRM"

1a and 1b are contradictions.

2) "we have contacted GoG.com and expect to distribute The Mandate via them at release"

They "expect". "Expectations" can be incorrect.

3) "... we plan to offer The Mandate via the Humble Store"

They "plan". Well, Elite Dangerous "planned" an offline singleplayer mode, until they didn't.

None of the "juicy parts" are explicit. Vague and loose wording.

Also nowhere in that paragraph (or anywhere else I checked but I wasn't exhaustive) does it actually say that they "plan" a DRM-free release for GOG. It's merely implied (again with the implying!) by them saying that they "plan" a non-DRM version for Linux users via Humble (because GOG doesn't "support" Linux). The obvious implication is well ofc they'll offer a non-DRM version for GOG, except for the Linux version. But that is not explicitly said.

So if we read what they actually say, it cannot be determined if there will in fact be a DRM-free version at all for any OS. It's all "plans", "expectations" and implications.

Hopefully I am just feeling burned by E.D.'s implications and plans not coming to fruition and projecting onto this game. BUT... I guess time will tell... :)

All that said, the game looks very interesting. I HOPE it is a cools as it looks AND a DRM-free OFFLINE version is made available here on GOG.

Nah, what I'm reading is pretty clear. No DRM, on Steam steamworks. And it will have a co-op mode (like D:OS had too).

Of course you can be sceptical about this whole thing, but then just write them again (which I'll do). And when they say they want to sell it on GOG, I know they know enough of GOG's policies to not try to sneak in any DRM.

Anyone contacted the dev for clarification?

Not yet. That was hypothetical, have to much to do right now and can't really make this decision yet. If any of you want to contact them yourself, feel free to do it and share the results with us.

I backed this game and am considering just creating a giveaway of everything I get for this game. I am just so disappointed as to what this game is becoming: MMO. Plus I have Wasteland2, Torment : ToN, Pillars of Eternity, and Divinity: OS to play or look forward to. So, perhaps within the next few weeks I'll create one. I'll throw a link here to my giveaway whenever I finally make that decision.

I vaguely remember asking them way back about this (i cant find my post on their forums) and getting some vague answer about single player + with optional interactions with others (cant remember how it was worded). I havent really checked their updates much since then (i decided not to back it back initially) and cant seem to find anything about the SP in the forums .
Also judging from posts in a few threads, looks like they were running out of money at some point... and hid that fact from backers for quite a longtime before getting publisher onboard Eurovideo (looks like they will handle post KS backers -- ill pass on the game mostly for this reason -- )

Your right. But i vaguely also remember being told it will be playable as a single player experience

I don't follow kickstarter updates, but I do hope it will be a single player experience. I typically would have checked, as I have no interest backing anything that isn't.

If it has indeed become a multiplayer game, that's one less game on my backlog. Typically I'd go on release and express my dissatisfaction, but that's about all I've got energy for doing. Plus, from comments here, it's not yet clear if it's a multiplayer game.